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Start
your own Herpes Association
 The
Business PlanCreating
an identity
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The
Business Plan
One of the critical success factors in developing a patient organisation
is the need for funds. In order to apply for funds from relevant sources,
such as pharmaceutical companies, research companies or philanthropic
organisations, you will need to present a business plan. The IHA can
provide a template to assist you
to complete a business plan. You will also find to examples
of successful business plan models at the bottom of this section.
What should you include in your business plan?
1. Executive Summary – this defines where your group is
now, what your mission is and how you intend to achieve it.
2. Rationale – what is the current situation in your country,
for example: how common is the infection; Is it a psychological burden;
what is the level of knowledge; is there adequate care.
3. The Charter – what is your mission statement, what are
your goals, and who is your audience.
4. The Structure – what is your current structure.
5. Stakeholders – who are your internal and external customers,
for example:internal may include your sponsor, and health or medical
organisation that you are aligned to; and external may be the general
public, people with herpes, patient groups, government funders, healthcare
providers etc.
6.
Patient Support and Advocacy Groups – this may detail the
types of groups already established in your country, where they are
placed and what support is currently available.
7.
SWOT Analysis – what are the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities
and threats that exist in your country to assist or prevent you succeeding.
8. Key Issues – for example: what do you need in order to
be an effective robust organisation; do you have a sponsor, and to what
level of funding; what partnerships do you have with patients/medical/health
professionals; what level of information is available and how easy is
it to access; and what is the patient/public awareness and attitude
to genital herpes.
9. Objectives – What are you trying to achieve.
10. Strategies – How will you achieve them (this is a detailed
breakdown of the objectives)
11. Tactics – Who will do each task, and by what date. All
of the proposed activities will need to have a costing put alongside
them, so as to ascertain budget requirements for funding assistance.
Business plan template
Successful
Business Plan Models
New Zealand Herpes Foundation Business Plan
2001
International Herpes Alliance Business Plan
Creating
an Identity
Selecting a Name
Choose a name that is easily identifiable with what you are offering.
Using “herpes” in the title is a good idea. Here are some
examples of names of herpes organisations and groups that are already
being used:
Australian Herpes Association
New Zealand Herpes Foundation
Association Herpes
Registering as a Company
Organising your activities and services under the “umbrella”
of a company will help you to create your own distinct identity. By
establishing a company, your organisation also becomes more official
and credible. If you want to seek charitable or not-for-profit status
later on, it may be necessary in your country to be an official company
or “incorporated” body.
The process of establishing a new company varies greatly from country
to country and it is best to seek legal advice. Here are the key questions
to consider when deciding whether to become an official company:
- do I definitely need to be a company to become a charity or can I
become a trust or another type of officially recognised organisation?
- what are the tax advantages and disadvantages of being a company?
- will I need to employ an accountant to prepare an annual set of accounts?
- will it therefore be expensive to maintain an official company?
If you decide to create a new company you will need to work with a lawyer
who can prepare the necessary legal paperwork. Again, each country has
different laws and regulations for this process. Normally, you will
find that the lawyer will draw up a contract of incorporation. The contract
will outline what needs to be put into place; for example, you are likely
to be asked to appoint “officers” of the corporation. These
are usually three or more people who will be responsible for making
decisions about how the company will operate and are often given titles
such as chair, treasurer and secretary.
Registering
as a Not-for-Profit Organisation
There are many benefits of registering your organisation as a charity
or not-for-profit organisation:
- you will become eligible to apply for charitable grants from foundations,
governments and other sources
- you will be eligible for certain tax benefits – these vary from
country to country but normally allow you to accept donations without
paying tax
- you may find special charity rates are available for a host of activities
such as advertising and registrations for conferences and exhibitions
- being an official charity tends to give you greater credibility when
communicating with others such as potential sponsors, the media etc.
The process of establishing charitable status varies greatly around
the world. Some countries, like the UK and France, have a central registration
body so this is the first point of contact. Its staff will be able to
advise you on the necessary steps. If you are unsure of where to start,
contact your local bureau of commerce.
Fundraising
Effective fundraising is an essential part of your survival, without
funds you cannot exist.
Defining What Funds You Need
The first step is to establish what funds you need to run your organisation
on a day to day basis. This includes overheads such as telephones, heating,
electricity, salaries, and rent. These are sometimes grouped together
under the heading “core funding”. You will then need to define
funding for each proposed activity and project.
Developing a Fundraising Policy
Developing a fundraising policy or strategy can help you focus your
fundraising efforts. This policy should take into consideration any
ethical or other issues held by your group or organisation. Develop
a document containing the following information:
- why you require funding (see above)
- what specific funds are needed to cover each activity and the core
funds
- what you aim to achieve
- how you intend to implement the activities
- the timeline
- fundraising packages
Fundraising packages can take two forms:
Corporate sponsorship packages can be structured into varying levels
depending on what funds are available. These may be Bronze, Silver and
Gold or 1 star, 2 star and 3 star sponsorships.
Project packages are used to secure funding for a specific activity
or project such as an event, campaign or for the development of material.
Potential Funding Sources
Financial support can come from a number of sources and it’s a
good idea to try and secure income from a broad base.
- Governments or their health departments may have health
promotion funds to which you can apply for funding. In Europe there
are European Union funds – look on the Internet for more information
on these.
- Industry/commercial companies tend to put their budgets
together during September/October for the next calendar year. Bear this
in mind when you make any approach to commercial companies.
- Health Foundations exist for the sole purpose of making
grants but you will need to be a registered charity to apply.
- Individuals may make donations either one-off or regularly.
In some countries there are mechanisms for money to be deducted at source
from working donors (sometimes known as payroll giving).
Develop a priority list and collect information on potential funders.
Match their interests with your own. Agree your method of application,
determine the right contact person and start building relationships.
Look at timing for submission of your proposals. Applications for Government
grants are often reviewed on an annual basis, so find out when your
application should be in.
How to Approach Sources for Funds
Companies, foundations and governments all normally require a written
proposal providing details of your organisation and project. Some will
have application forms to be completed. For a standard funding proposal
the following information will be required:
- details about your organisation, including the need it meets
- numbers of any members/size of audience you expect to reach
- amount of money being asked for
- what the money will be covering
- what you intend to achieve
- time scales.
Principles of a Funding Partnership
When you agree funding always develop a written agreement/contract defining
what is and what is not acceptable by both parties. This agreement should
include:
- a description of the relationship
- amount of funding agreed
- purpose of the grant/funds
- expectations
- evaluation criteria.
There should be no strings attached to finance and no expectations that
products or services are endorsed. Whoever your funding comes from,
a basic principle is to keep them informed of your progress.
Self Fundraising Mechanisms
Look at ideas on how you can generate your own funds, such as:
- membership fees
- registration fees for seminars and other events
- sale of literature and other materials.
Project Management
Once you know what funds are available you need to plan activities that
you feel best fulfil your objectives. Having an activity plan in place
will help you to schedule and implement your activities more efficiently
and effectively. This is all part of good project management.
Employing a Project Manager
Although you may be able to enlist support from volunteers to help initiate
activities, critical to the long-term success of any initiative is the
appointment of an experienced, paid project manager. This is not a voluntary
position, and it is not a position that we would recommend is suitable
for a person with herpes.
Why employ a Project Manager?
- Provides a safety net between people with herpes, sponsor and medical/health
professionals
- provides an independent person to communicate and liaise with all
stakeholders
- ensures the objectives of the project are met
- translates the goals into realised projects, through integrating the
needs of people with herpes, medical/health professionals and sponsors.
If you are setting up a herpes resource organisation this will involve
a considerable amount of time and work. It should be your goal to identify
and seek funding for a paid Project Manager who will be responsible
for the day-to-day running of the organisation. The Project Manager
will also be responsible for scheduling and overseeing all the activities
of the group. Below you will find a job description for a Project Manager,
detailing the ideal skills required for this position. If your organisation
is still getting off the ground, a part-time person may suffice in the
interim.
Project Manager Job Description
Click here to down load an example
Project Manager job description
A successful working model - The New Zealand
Herpes Foundation
To
view a presentation created by the NZHF, which details their activities
since being established, please scroll down to the bottom part of the
downloadable PDF of this section.